The present invention, in general, relates to fish hooks in which the hook is mounted in such a way that the hook will set itself in the fish's mouth upon the slighest nibble from a fish. In addition, the fish hook of the present invention is constructed to keep the hook from becoming snagged in vegetation in the water.
It is important to continuously monitor the fishing line while fishing. When a fish bites the bait, the angler must be prepared to set the hook. In general, if the fish swallows the bait, this is not a problem since the angler will feel a tug on the line and knows that the hook is set. Problems arise, however, since the angler may not feel a tug from the fish on the line. This can happen if the line is tangled at the end of the fishing pole or if the angler has stepped away from his rod. This may happen in surf fishing where a rod is inserted in a rod holster, for instance. If the line is tangled at the tip of the fishing line, a slight tug will not be transmitted to the angler, and he will not know to set the hook. In addition, a fish often may lightly bite the bait but not actually have enough of the bait in his mouth to be captured if the hook were set by the angler. The fish may be merely mouthing the bait and move away from the bait when the angler attempts to set the hook.
Another problem encountered during fishing is the fact that the hook will often snag upon vegetation. When this happens, the hook is sometimes lost because it cannot be unhooked from the vegetation.
In the past, the prior art has attempted to create a hook that is weed-proof by putting various members in front of the hook's barb in order to prevent the barb from snagging in the vegetation. This has been done in a variety of ways. However, the prior art does not show a fishing hook that is constructed so as to set itself in the fish's mouth upon the slightest touch from a fish. The present invention discloses a self-setting hook that also achieves the feature of helping to prevent the hook from